After Michigan denied Tesla Motors’ application for licenses to sell directly to consumers, the company has filed a lawsuit against the state, challenging a law that says automakers can only sell through franchised dealerships. [More]

It sounds like an obvious plot in a movie: a man working for Big Oil tries to steal secrets from an electric car company by impersonating its CEO to steal financial secrets! Except it really happened, according to a new lawsuit from Tesla Motors that claims someone pretended to be Elon Musk in a bid to get juicy inside information. [More]

It’s a car, it’s a boat… it’s a Tesla? Should Model S owners ever find themselves in a suddenly wet situation, Tesla CEO says not to worry — the cars can basically turn into a boat for a little bit when you need them to. [More]

While current Tesla owners can drive up to any one of the Supercharging stations in the company’s network, plug in, and fill up on electricity for free, future owners of Model 3 cars probably won’t be able to enjoy that same service without paying for it. [More]

If you own a Tesla Model S or Model X but didn’t feel like forking over $2,500 for the company’s new Autopilot software, you’re in luck: Tesla drivers can now get a free taste of what a more autonomous future could be like with a monthlong trial of the feature. [More]

As carmakers continue to push for fully autonomous vehicles that will take the hassle out of driving, Tesla Motors is taking another step in that direction with a software upgrade that will allow Model S owners to park them in a garage or perpendicular spaces without anyone behind the wheel. [More]

While the word “autopilot” might conjure up images of sitting back with your feet up on the dashboard, hands behind your head as your car drives itself along, we’re still far from that reality. But Tesla says that a new software update for the Model S will allow drivers to let the car do some of the driving, though you’ll still need to put your hands on the wheel now and then. [More]

Have a hankering for a Tesla electric car but don’t have anywhere in the neighborhood of $127,000? If you don’t need insanity mode or the other high-priced options included in the Model S P85D or even the regular Model S at around $69,000, Tesla CEO Elon Musk says he’s got a deal for you — well, in March, that is, when the company starts taking preorders for its cheaper Model 3 car.

High-tech electric car company Tesla has spent the year fighting with a huge number of states over their preferred business model: the company sells vehicles directly to consumers, instead of going through the traditional dealer route. Tesla has been wildly successful selling their cars this way. So successful, in fact, that dealers in many states are fighting hard to claim Tesla’s model is illegal under state law — or getting state law changed to make sure it’s illegal. Dealers in Massachusetts trying their own variation on that maneuver, however, have just had their case tossed out of court, allowing Tesla to continue operations in that state.

While the White House will respond to any We The People petition over 100,000 signatures, that doesn’t mean that the answer is always going to be something petitioners want to hear. And in the case of the 138,469 who wanted the administration to prevent sales from banning direct-to-consumer auto sales from companies like Tesla, that reply is pretty much, “Can’t do it, that’s Congress’ thing.” [More]

It’s not every day that a car splits in half, and it’s definitely not an event carmakers want to have happen. That’s why Tesla is now pledging to fully investigate how a stolen Model S split in half at the end of a high-speed chase and collision with a light pole. [More]

Worried about the always looming, definitely gonna happen robot revolution? You’re not the only one imagining the insufferable chains of slavery our robot overlords are going to slap on us someday. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors, is also worried robots are up to no good, so he’s keeping an eye on the artificial industry just in case. [More]

After lawmakers in New Jersey and Missouri both recently proposed regulations that would prohibit car companies like Tesla Motors from selling vehicles directly to consumers instead of through independent dealers, the Federal Trade Commission is weighing in with comments for legislators in those states, urging them to consider abandoning existing laws and change things up a bit. . [More]

Tesla has its work cut out for it in Missouri, where yesterday legislators followed states like New Jersey and added a nugget into a previous bill going around that would bar the company (or any other carmakers) from selling vehicles directly to consumers in that state. Tesla, of course, isn’t happy about this. [More]